Los Angeles daily herald., 1887-04-17
GERMAN LEGISLATION.
Financial Proposals Soon to be
Submitted to the ReichstaG.
lCopyrighted by the New York Associated
Press 1887.

submitted 10 the HelchStaRs
Copyrighted by the New York Associated
Press, 1887.
BERLIN, April l6.-Prince Bismarck
will return to Berlin in time to be pres
ent at the debate in the Reichstag on
the financial proposals. The project be.
fore the Bundesrath asking for supple-
mentary military credit covers simply
the purposes already agreed upon and
has no war character. 1t will pass the
Reichstag without active opposition; it
will be otherwise, however, with the
taxation reforms and especially
with the proposed tax on
the consumption of spirits and
sugars. The statement is published that
the nature of the proposal is doubtful.
The bills were only sent to the Bundles.
rath to-day. The budget estimate of
the spirit duty for the current year is
that it will yield 5000, 900 marks. Ten
years ago it was 35, 600, 600 marks. On
sugar this year the duty is $4,000, 900
marks, whereas a decade ago it was
45, 900, coo marks. Though it is thus
made evident that fiscal reforms
are necessary, any proposals that
the government may entertain are
sure to arouse sectional opposition.
The Conservatives are privately urging
Prince Bismarck to respond to the i'm
pending Russian customs edits, affecting
German traders, by retaliation in the
form of an increase of the duties on Rus.
sian corn. The other groups in the
Reichstag have no sympathy with this
movement, besides the financial propos-
ais. The legislative working awaiting
the Reichstsg includes several important
developments of Prince Bismarck's so.
cal reform scheme. The first bill to be
considered is the one providing for the
insurance of seamen against accidents,
which has already been sent to com.
mittee. 1t has the partial approval Of
the shipping interests, and will pass
without trouble. The next bill to come
up will be the one extending the acci.
dent insurance law to laborers employed
in the construction of public works.
This will also pass, but the governments
proposals to amend the law relating to
industrial occupation, in the direction
of Strengthening the trade guild system,
will lead to an energetic collision
of opinion in the Reichstag. On the
whole, the prospect for the session is
that it will be busy one, claiming the
best energies of the parties without the
worst form of party passion and likely
to result in sound practical legislation.
Successful experiments have been made
at Metz with a navigable balloon, pro.
PEELED with an electric motor. The
Augsburger Allgemeine Zeitung says the
balloon is the invention of a German
named Walker, who, for some time, was
employed in America, where he per-
fected his discovery. The German Gov
eminent, the paper says. has bought the
invention, paying for it 1000, 600 marks
down, and another 100, 900 marks, which
is to be paid in installments. The speed
of the balloon exceeds that of
railway train, and may be
stopped and directed at will, moving
against the wind. Whatever Of truth
there may be in the report, it is certain
that the residents of Metz are now
nightly startled by an electric illumina-
tion lowering at great height over their
houses.
The official returns of the war office
show that the total number of German
troops in the exterior zone of the west.
ern frontier, including Metz, Strassburg,
Karlsruhe, Freiburg and Treves is
100. 600 men, while in the interior zone,
comprising Stuttgart, Wurzburg, Co.
logne, Dusseldorf, Frankfort and
Darmstadt, the number is IL ZOO. The
total pupo har of Uunc ia ESO
The Chinese loan of 100000 600 francs
has been readily subscribed, although
at the high rate of l04 per cent. This
is considered to be the opening of
an era of successful competition with
England in her financial relations with
China. The low rates of interest facili-
tated the making of the loan. The
government is urged 20 take advantage
of the present favorable condition to
convert further state loans